Australia will have its “shortest day of the year” this week when the southern hemisphere experiences the winter solstice.
But just how much daylight (or darkness) you’ll get depends on where you are in the country.
Here’s when the winter solstice will happen and what you can expect.
What is Australia’s 2024 winter solstice?
It’s often called the shortest day of the year.
But, technically, it’s the day with the least amount of daylight hours.
That’s because it’s when the southern hemisphere is at its furthest tilt away from the Sun, meaning we get less sunlight.
At the same time, the Northern Hemisphere will be experiencing the summer solstice – known as the longest day of the year.
When is the 2024 winter solstice in Australia?
The winter solstice usually happens around June 21 but sometimes the date varies.
This year, it will be on Friday, June 21.
We often just think of a solstice as applying to the whole day (or night) but there is a specific period you can look out for.
According to timeanddate.com, the exact moment the southern hemisphere is at its furthest tilt from the Sun will be at:
- 6.50am AEST
- 6.20am ACST
- 4.50am AWST
How long is the shortest day of the year?
That depends on where you are in Australia, because places closer to the equator get more daylight during winter than those further south.
Here’s how many hours of daylight our capital cities will get:
- Adelaide: 9 hours, 48 minutes and 18 seconds
- Brisbane: 10 hours, 24 minutes and 12 seconds
- Canberra: 9 hours, 46 minutes and 25 seconds
- Darwin: 11 hours, 23 minutes and 45 seconds
- Hobart: 9 hours and 50 seconds
- Melbourne: 9 hours, 32 minutes and 27 seconds
- Perth: 10 hours, 3 minutes and 22 seconds
- Sydney: 9 hours, 53 minutes and 49 seconds
When do the days start getting longer?
After the winter solstice.
Each day will get a fraction more daylight than the previous until this year’s summer solstice.
When is Australia’s 2024 summer solstice?
This year it’ll be on December 21.
Why are the days shorter in winter?
Because of the Earth’s tilt toward the Sun, which is 23.5 degrees.
That means when the southern hemisphere is facing the Sun more directly, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted away.
This is why, when we experience summer here in Australia, the Northern Hemisphere experiences its winter.
During this time, we get fewer daylight hours and the light is spread over a greater surface area, meaning the days don’t get as warm.
As for the days being longer in summer and shorter in winter, here’s how science presenter Bernie Hobbs explained it:
“In summer, days are longer because more hours are spent facing the Sun.
“And they’re hotter because we’re facing the Sun more head-on — so we get hit by more rays of sunlight than if we were on an angle.”
What does the winter solstice symbolise?
You may hear some people describe this week’s solstice as the start of winter (or summer, if they live in the Northern Hemisphere).
That’s because some countries observe astronomical seasons, which means the beginning of each season aligns with the year’s solstices and equinoxes.
An equinox is when the Sun passes directly over the equator.
Like solstices, there are two equinoxes each year.
But Australia officially observes meteorological seasons, which line up with the calendar months.
So that’s why winter officially started on June 1 in Australia.
However, it’s worth noting that, because Australia covers such a vast space, different parts of the country experience seasons differently.